You Love the Boy
by Little Hairy Eyeball
Summary: A short ficlet set during Tabula Rasa. Right between the Ganya Kiss, and the nervous cleaning. First time fic, please be gentle.


TITLE: "You Love the Boy"  
  
AUTHOR: LilHairyEyeball  
  
EMAIL: lilhairyeyeball@allwrongheaded.com  
  
FEEDBACK: Gimme gimme. Just be gentle.  
  
SUMMARY: A short ficlet set during Tabula Rasa. Right between the Ganya Kiss, and the nervous cleaning.  
  
SPOILERS: Up through Tabula Rasa, S6  
  
RATING: PG-13 - If that.  
  
DISCLAIMER: Nobody buys me good presents, so I steal other peoples  
  
NOTE: So totally unbeta-ed. Just watched the epi and decided to see where it took me.  
  
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Their eyes snapped open, and Rupert promptly dropped Anya on the floor.  
  
They stayed that way for what seemed like hours, as Giles simply stared into space. The former demon sat on the floor with her legs flayed, mouth opening but for one rare moment, finding nothing to say. The silence was deafening.  
  
When Anya eventually came back to her senses, the inevitable fidgeting began. The lack of conversation began to overwhelm her, and she knew she had to break the silence.  
  
"Rupert? Rupie? Giles! Are you having some sort of coronary episode? Do I need to call for assistance?"  
  
The Watchers gaze made it's way down to the vibrant young woman before him. Dear God, he was going to hell for his actions over the past year. Going straight to hell. He finally started to focus on what Anya was saying and began to speak up.  
  
".And I'm not familiar when the methods of CPR, but when Buffy returns, she might be able to provide the kiss of live. Although, kiss of life? With a name like that, she might not want to. I mean, what about "the air of life". What's wrong with that? I mean really, am I the only one who sees the connotations attached to that? And another thing."  
  
"Anya, for goodness sake, calm down," sighed Giles, as he slowly sat down in a chair. He felt so old right now. So incredibly damn old.  
  
Anya's head tilted in a manner that both seemed reassuring and terrifying. "Calm down? Rupert Giles, have you any idea what's just happened? Someone, and I'm guessing it's our resident Wicca screw up, cast a forgetting spell on us all. Putting us in danger. If that wasn't bad enough, the confusion leads to me making smoochies with my employer, and cheat on my fiancé. Do you know how many men I've punished for just that thing?"  
  
She held his gaze, expectantly. No doubt waiting for the Giles words of wisdom to make things better. He wished he had such words. He had many thoughts. None of which his young business partner would want to hear. And she was. Young. Again, the tired feeling of middle age swept through his body. He really didn't belong here any more.  
  
"Giles? Giles? Are you sure you're going to be all right? You keep staring off into space, and it's becoming rather disconcerting. My God, what if the others see you like this! They'll know! Xander will know! Everyone will blame me for killing you with a kiss!"  
  
Her rant was interrupted by a short chuckle from the man seated across the room.  
  
"Anya. Dear girl, calm down. I'm fine, honestly. We were not in control of what happened this evening, and if it makes you feel any better, we don't have to tell your beloved what occurred."  
  
"But..."  
  
"No Anya. Don't fear. We're not lying to him, ourselves, or anyone else. Do you understand?"  
  
"Not really. I've seen this a million times before. Maybe more. Once, in East Germany, I met a woman who's husband had done the exact same thing. Without the forgetting spell, naturally. She wished his lips would just drop right off his face! Like slugs! It really was rather..."  
  
"Anya."  
  
".Grotesque. But I guess hindsight really is everything. At the time I thought it was glorious. And of course you see, being slugs, they weren't dead. Oh no, they."  
  
"Anya!" This time he called her name in a forceful manner. The attitude she always enjoyed seeing him take. She pauses for a moment to imagine what Ripper looked like in his heyday, but quickly shakes the image from her mind.  
  
"I'm sorry Giles, but this whole situation has me rather upset and..."  
  
"Dear Lord, girl. Please be quiet for just a moment? Thank you. As I was saying. We're not deceiving anybody. It's not as if we were acting on real feelings or emotions, is it? A spell caused us to act out a certain scenario, and neither one of us can be held responsible."  
  
"Well, I'm thinking that a certain red-head could be."  
  
"Anya, please!" She stops then, hearing something akin to desperation in his voice. Desperation? Anya was clearly reading too much into Rupie's reaction, and oh no, she's called him Rupie again. This is very disconcerting.  
  
"Anya. We'll not be lying. Merely omitting a minor detail from a rather unusual evening. There is no point in un-necessarily upsetting anybody else with this, is there? We simply put this behind us, and carry on."  
  
He's standing now, and yes, he really is ruggedly handsome. She and Rupie could have had a great future together, with the running of the store, and quite frankly, great sex. She's sure that Ripper probably makes an appearance in those instances. She'd like to see that, and oh God! It must be a residual effect of the spell. And he's being so mature about everything. No doubt Xander is in the tunnels somewhere, having an episode like the nerdish child he really is. Oh, why won't her thoughts stop betraying her like this?  
  
"Anya? Anya, dear?" He's talking more softly now, but it's simply concern over her, as a friend. She's been through so much, and has so much ahead of her. He can't see this going well, but what can he say? He's too old for her. She may have once been a woman scorned, who's seen a lifetime, but now she's just a girl. A girl who would want nothing to do with a man who can't relate to children he's known forever and a day. He doesn't belong here. He's passed his time.  
  
They're watching each other now. The tension is almost visible in the air. There's just no going back, and it's a hard struggle forward. Spells. Willow should have known better. But still, unsurprising considering her stunts over the past year or so. She's thinking too highly of herself these days. When she gets back to the shop, things will have to be said.  
  
They're each snapped back to reality. My God, the others will be returning soon. What will be said?  
  
"You know Anya, all this rabbit insanity has made a bit of a mess to the store. What say we clean this up while we wait for the others to return?"  
  
"Yes," she says, faltering slightly. She'd rather have a sit down chat with the man before her, but she knows she can't. She has a life already, and she has to get back to it. "Yes, we should clean. Keep ourselves busy." Stop the thoughts.  
  
"Excellent. I'll fetch the dusters." He nods quickly and makes to leave, before hesitating. He really is going straight to hell. "Anya. We should really keep this to ourselves. There is no need to un-duly worrying Xander about this that will never happen. Is there?"  
  
Anya smiles softly. She's not a young naive thing. She can read between the lines, and hear what Giles is really telling her. Ever the gentleman, it appears.  
  
"You're absolutely right Giles, as always. We need to just carry on from before, and put the madness behind us." Or cherish the memories when we're old and un-loved.  
  
"Right. I'll erm, just go get those dusters." He stops again, wishing he didn't feel compelled to say this. But he is a gentleman, it's right. It's what he has to do. The good old sage wisdom he is known for. Unfortunately. "You love him Anya. He loves you. There is no need to cause un-necessary friction between you. You're going to marry him. You love the boy"  
  
With that he quickly leaves the room. Anya sits down, unsure as to why she's so disappointed by that. Softy to herself, she says, "but I think what I need is a man, Rupert." 


End file.
